WORKING WITH INDUSTRY TO NURTURE THE TALENT THEY NEED

This Wiki is based upon the experiences within BA(Hons) Creative Advertising and
how it has managed to embed industry within the course to help it give Level 3
students employment opportunities, the industry the talent that has relevant
expertise and the course a way of staying at the front-line of an ever-changing
industry.

CONTRIBUTION TO BEST PRACTICE GUIDE: EMPLOYABILITY WIKI

WORKING WITH INDUSTRY TO NURTURE THE

TALENT THEY NEEDEDU120 PGCHE Assignment 4 by Darren Whittington 03/15.........................................................................................................................................INTRODUCTION:This Wiki is based upon the experiences within BA(Hons) Creative Advertising andhow it has managed to embed industry within the course to help it give Level 3students employment opportunities, the industry the talent that has relevantexpertise and the course a way of staying at the front-line of an ever-changingindustry.THE BACKGROUND:Advertising is a fast paced industry that is at the forefront of communication. Its abusiness that constantly evolves and no more so than during the recession thatbegan in 2007 when advertising budgets were slashed and many companies wereforced to rethink their strategies(1. Martin Sorrell. Economist. 2009).The up side to this was that the industry fragmented and created multitudes ofareas of expertise that embraced new media, invented others and found new waysto engage with consumers creating a melting pot of specialist areas that has seenthe industry diversify to find new market share(2. Bloomberg. 2014) which hashelped contribute to the 20% increase in employability in the advertising sectorbetween 2011-2013(3. Dept. of Culture Report. 2014).In a teaching profession that focuses on employability the course needed to stay intouch with the pace of change to make sure that what we teach is relevant to theagencies and create the specialist talent that they need.HOW THE COLLABORATION WORKS IN PRACTICE:The course created a framework for the agencies to engage within and opened up amodule that could be delivered by collaboration and fulfill Objective 2 of theStrategic Plan(4.Falmouth University.2012-2017). This module allowed the agenciesto set live briefs that were relevant to their sector areas in the industry together with

the learning outcomes set within the module MIF, supported by workshops run bylecturers and a lecture series that was delivered by the agencies on campus orremotely.The framework allowed for 6 agency briefs within one module during one semester,giving the student a broad knowledge of the industry and access to expertise thatthat could be shared within the teaching environment.The workshops that followed each brief helped expand the context of the briefswithin the industry and how these new sectors of advertising are developing a neweconomy within the creative sector.The lecture series supported the workshops and briefs with leading talent from theagencies that opened up new knowledge that was otherwise unattainable within theeducation environment.Throughout this framework the agencies were encouraged to give first handfeedback to students in accordance to the NUS feedback charter(5. Principles 3 &8) to help develop their thinking through formative assessment and the potentialfor shining students to present at the agency to get a foot in the door, network andpossibly gain a placement/internship.WHAT ARE THE RESULTS:FOR THE STUDENT-

First hand feedback

Live briefsFoot in the doorDevelopment of presentation skillsNetworkingClearer understanding of future goalsPotential placement/employability

FOR THE COURSE

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Access to expertise that would otherwise be unavailable to the course

The briefs were unique, relevant a future focusedPR, kudos, and industry acknowledgementA framework to encourage other agencies to partake inA network within the industry with a long term vision for growthDirect relationships with agencies94% DHLE 2013 Employability rate26 placement opportunities from 6 agencies in one semester for 14students out of 26 in Level 3

FOR THE AGENCY

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A clear time frame to work with that was designed to be as minimal as

possible with maximum student engagement.It doesnt require the agency to be on campus.The flexibility to engage as much as was possible based on their workload.Access to bright, well informed students.Stronger candidates for employment.Risk free.